Actual Stop (22 page)

I exchanged a quick glance with Allison, who grinned at me and lifted her glass in a mock salute. I rolled my eyes. The rest of the guys chimed in their own raucous comments, and glasses clinked as they toasted.

I protested. “Hey! Why do you all sound so surprised?”

Allison leaned in to whisper in my ear. “I’m not.”

The sensation of her lips brushing softly against my skin mingled with the heady scent of her perfume made me shudder. My head swam, and a tendril of molten desire snaked its way toward my gut. “You’re not?”

Allison grinned. “Nah. I knew you’d keep him alive. I was taking bets on whether he’d be in one piece though.”

“Ha, ha.” I wrinkled my nose at her and moved to drop my shot into my beer. “Very funny.”

Allison laughed, and the sight of her mirth lifted my spirits.

“Hey, Ryan, wait! Let me get my watch ready.”

I paused and turned to find Rico Corazon grinning at me wickedly. The shouts from the guys nearest to us reached a decibel level that made me wish I had earplugs, and I knew I was in serious trouble. I glanced to Allison for assistance, but she was conveniently engaged in conversation with one of the other guys she knew from before she went to D.C. and pretending not to notice my silent pleas for help. Traitor.

“Wait, wait,” someone else was shouting. “Let me get one, too. I wanna race.”

Several other voices chimed in, echoing the call to Sean to set them up with another round. The rest of the guys started placing bets.

I shot Rico a mock glare. “Thanks, buddy.”

Rico laughed, showcasing his dimples and revealing a dazzling smile. He shrugged his broad shoulders and hooked his thumbs into the pockets of his jeans. With his caramel-colored skin, thick black hair, and deep-brown eyes, Rico was stunning. You know, in that brawny, male kind of way. Like drop-dead, mouth-opened, drooling-on-yourself gorgeous. He also happened to be a really nice guy. If I were into men, he’d have totally been my type. Hell, as it was I sometimes found myself studying him a little too closely and giggling like a schoolgirl whenever he teased me.

“That’s what I’m here for.”

“To be my own personal menace?”

Rico’s grin grew. “Exactly.”

“Great.”

“I put fifty bucks on you,” Rico informed me. “You’d better win.”

“Bite me.”

“Okay, okay,” a new voice shouted. “We’re all ready. Let’s go.”

“Sean, call it,” someone else chimed in.

Sean made a show of raising his hand in the air the way I was sure only people in bad movies about drag racing did. He grinned at us and counted down. “Three…Two…One…” His hand fell, and the race was on.

We all dropped our shots into our beers and started chugging. Somehow, I managed to avoid spilling mine down the front of myself, but it was a struggle. I slammed my glass triumphantly down on the bar and noted I’d finished well before any of the guys. Pleased with myself, I turned to find Rico beaming at me.

Cheers and groans erupted from the watching throng, followed by some good-natured ribbing of the guys who’d just been beaten in a drinking contest by a girl. I laughed and motioned to Sean to get me my Harp and a glass of water.

Though the number of women in law enforcement was steadily rising, it was still mostly a man’s world, and a lot of men, unfortunately, continued to have trouble sharing the field. I’d found two surefire ways to gain their respect and acceptance: kick someone’s ass or drink them under the table. It helped a lot if you could do both. I was much better at the drinking part, but I wasn’t above fighting dirty in either arena, especially if it meant I was going to win. However, I’d noticed most of the guys handled it better when I outdrank them than when I beat them up. Go figure.

“I knew you could do it.” Rico threw one arm around my shoulder and squeezed.

I shoved him playfully. “That wasn’t fair, and you know it. Why’d you goad them all into a bet they couldn’t possibly win?”

“Hey, it isn’t like you’re a secret ringer or anything. It’s their own damn fault if they overestimate their own drinking abilities and bet against you.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“Ryan!” a high, musical female voice squealed.

A petite blonde launched herself into my arms and nearly knocked the wind out of me. Then two deceptively strong hands mashed my face, and someone kissed me rather soundly on the lips.

“I’m so glad you’re finally here,” the woman exclaimed, snuggling up next to me. “I’ve been waiting forever.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Allison staring at us with an odd expression, but when I turned my head to look at her fully, she’d already glanced away. I hooked one arm around my assailant’s shoulder and glanced at Rico.

“How much has she had to drink?”

Rico shrugged, his face split by a sly grin. “I don’t keep track of my wife’s alcohol consumption. You know that. Makes it easier for me to take advantage of her.”

“Clearly.”

“Hey, you can take advantage of her, too.” Rico grinned lasciviously. “As long as I get to watch.”

I backhanded him lightly in the stomach. “Pig.”

“Yup.” He seemed proud of the label.

“Hey, Paige.” I allowed myself to make a lingering examination of the woman. “You look absolutely gorgeous. I might actually make a move on you tonight.”

Paige beamed, all pearly white teeth and sparkling blue eyes, and I knew my comment had had the desired effect. Okay, I’ll admit it, I was flirting. But that had absolutely nothing to do with threesomes or getting laid. I swear.

Rico and I had been partners back when I was in the Counterfeit Squad. We’d been undercover together on what’d turned out to be the biggest investigation of the year. Not just for New York, but Service-wide. And when I say “together,” I mean we’d posed as a couple at a posh Latin nightclub, whose owner had been suspected of printing counterfeit bills in extremely large numbers and giving them back as change, as well as selling them to other people to use however and wherever they wanted.

The assignment had translated to a lot of nights when Rico didn’t go home until the wee hours of the morning, and Paige had apparently been jealous of all the time Rico and I were spending together. In what he’d deemed a move of pure brilliance, Rico had decided to diffuse his wife’s insecurity by having her meet me.

Working in a male-dominated field for as long as I had, I’d gotten used to women being suspicious of all the time I spent with their men. I found it laughable. I had less than no interest in men in general, let alone their men specifically, but I couldn’t blame them for being wary. Not with the rumors circulating in the public about what goes on in this agency.

More often than not, the women calmed down as soon as the guys explained I was irrevocably gay, but in a few cases, it’d taken a bit more than that. Trial and error had taught me that flirting with them would effectively reassure them I had absolutely no designs on their mates. It was a fine line to walk, and I could take it further with some than with others, but the tactic hadn’t failed me yet.

While I had to use varying levels of attention to placate all the wives or girlfriends I’d encountered, Paige actually flirted back. Mercilessly and with great enthusiasm.

Now she favored me with a coquettish smile as she slowly looked me up and down. “Dressed like that, I think I might let you.”

“Tease.”

She blew me a kiss. “You love it.”

“So, how’ve you been? I didn’t expect to see you here tonight.”

Paige made an impatient motion with her hand. “Ha! Like I was gonna miss your big celebration.”

“Paige, it’s not that big a deal, really.”

Paige’s stare indicated she thought I was being an idiot. “Your first PPD visit as counterpart? It’s a huge deal. Rico and I are gonna buy you a drink.”

“You’re just trying to get me drunk.”

“Damn right I am. You play hard to get when you’re sober.”

“How do you know I’m easy when I’m bombed?”

“Wishful thinking.” She turned to Rico. “Baby, can you get us some shots?”

“Sure. What would you ladies like?”

“You pick,” I told him.

Rico grinned evilly, and Paige let out a low groan. “We’re going to end up with Wild Turkey now.”

I grimaced. “No way. Pick something else.”

Rico ordered Paige and me kamikaze shots instead, in deference to what he called our “girly-ness,” and we downed them after a sloppy toast. He signaled Sean to set us up with another round, and I made a mental note to myself to be careful. Despite my earlier vow, I’d concluded nothing good could come of me getting smashed.

I glanced around to see where Allison had gotten to. She met my stare and favored me with her heart-stopping smile. I smiled back and silently motioned to her drink. She nodded.

I placed the order with Sean, adding another glass of water for her, and turned back around to find Paige eyeing me.

“Who’s your friend?” She lifted her chin and cut a pointed glance toward Allison, who was now laughing at something one of the guys was saying to her. Of course, she was absolutely stunning, and for a long moment, I forgot how to breathe.

“She’s the PPD lead. She was my counterpart for the visit.”

“Oh.” She continued to size up Allison. “She’s pretty.”

“Mm-hmm.” No way I was going there. Not even with Paige.

“Will she get jealous if you dance with me?”

“I can promise you she won’t care.”

“Good. I’m going to go pick some songs.” Paige abruptly released her hold on me and began weaving unsteadily toward the digital jukebox that hung on the wall.

“You did a good job today, Ryan,” Rico told me seriously after his wife had wandered away.

“Thanks. Like I said, it was no big deal. You know how it is. I didn’t really do anything other than be Allison’s bitch. She did most of the work.”

Rico held out a newly filled shot glass to me and clinked his against it when I’d finally taken possession. “Well, here’s to your bitchiness, then. Who knew you’d be so good at it?”

I made a face at him and downed my shot. “I seem to recall you complaining about that particular character trait at least once a day when we worked together.”

“Shows how much you know. It was more than that. I just did it behind your back most of the time.” He grinned at me.

“Coward.”

Rico just laughed off the insult and handed me another glass. He lifted his in salute. “We have something else to toast, you know.”

“We do?”

“Yup. They moved me back to Counterfeit.” His dark eyes sparkled with pride.

I couldn’t restrain my grin, and I answered his proposed toast with a lift of my glass. “No way. Really? That’s great, Rico.”

He nodded and slammed his shot in one quick gulp. “Yeah, I’m the new backup.”

I finished off my own drink and gave him a big celebratory hug. “Congratulations. You’re going to be a great re-addition to that squad. You were always fantastic at counterfeit. The newer guys will learn a lot from you.”

Rico grinned at me. “Thanks. You really think so?”

“Totally. In fact, I may be hitting you up for some assistance soon.”

Though we hadn’t worked closely together in quite some time, I knew I could trust Rico with any secret. I’d never have to worry about him ratting me out to the bosses for conducting investigations outside my current purview. He could be counted on to do what needed to be done and still protect me—and by extension my friend Sarah—in the process. His transfer back to Counterfeit, as the backup no less, couldn’t have come at a better time.

Rico’s humorous expression turned immediately serious, and he studied me with concerned eyes. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah. I just got something dropped in my lap the other day that looks like it might be bigger than the one-note pass we originally thought. I don’t want to get into it now, but I may be coming to you soon looking to pick that devious brain of yours.”

“Well, my devious brain and I are always here for you, whatever you need.”

“I know. And I appreciate it.”

“Hey, hey, hey!” Paige exclaimed as she stumbled back over to us. Her blue eyes were narrowed, and she shifted her gaze from Rico to me and then back. “What’s with all the hugging? You can’t hug her without me. You know that.”

Rico lifted both his hands. “I just told her about my backup slot, and she started mauling me. You know she can’t be controlled.”

Paige shot me a conspiratorial little grin, the pride for her hubby’s accomplishment shining in her eyes. “Just how out of control are you?”

“Very,” I told her, flashing a smile.

In unspoken agreement, Paige and I both pounced on Rico, trapping him rather violently in the middle of an extremely vigorous hug. Rico made a big show of protesting and trying to break loose, but Paige and I held on tight for another long moment before we freed him.

I was laughing—really laughing—for what felt like the first time in days, and I had a lightness in my soul I desperately needed. Automatically, my eyes swept the room, searching out Allison as if to include her in my joy. I caught her watching me from a few feet away. Her eyes were hard and slightly narrowed as she took in the tableau Rico, Paige, and I presented, but when I winked at her, the corners of her mouth turned up in a small smile.

I glanced at my watch for the third time in less than ten minutes, eager for a plausible excuse to make my escape. The party was still going strong and showing absolutely no signs of flagging. Apparently, the guys had banded together to once again prove me wrong. Thanks, guys!

I sighed and considered my options. True, I was having a blast. Ever since I’d transferred out of Counterfeit to PI and Rico had been shuttled over to Protection, I welcomed any opportunity to spend time with him. That Paige was here as well was just frosting on the cake of my day.

However, the hour was growing late. I’d imbibed all the alcohol I was inclined to for one evening and had switched to a steady stream of water some time ago. And I had to get up early in order to administer the remaining PT tests, which would be the beginning of a very long day for me. It was past time for me to pack it in.